Following a meeting with Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank on Wednesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Palestinian leader was committed to reforming the Palestinian Authority so "it can effectively take responsibility for Gaza”. The meeting came as the top US diplomat sought to rally the region behind postwar plans for the enclave. Follow our liveblog for all the latest developments in the Israel-Hamas war.
Summary:
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas that the US backs "tangible steps" towards a Palestinian state.
- UK and US naval forces "repelled the largest attack by the Iranian-backed Houthis in the Red Sea to date", British Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said. The UN Security Council will vote Wednesday on a US-proposed resolution that would condemn and demand an immediate halt to Houthi attacks on merchant vessels.
- Jordan's King Abdullah and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called for increased pressure to end Israel’s “aggression” in Gaza in a statement released after the two leaders met Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas at a summit Wednesday in the Jordanian city of Aqaba.
- Gaza's entire 2.3 million population is also in a food crisis, with 576,000 people at catastrophic or starvation levels.
- Israeli officials say 1,139 people were killed in the Hamas-led October 7 attacks in southern Israel, among them 695 Israeli civilians including 36 children. At least 23,357 people have been killed and 59,410 wounded in Israel's ensuing assault on the Gaza Strip, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run enclave.
Yesterday's key developments:
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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Israel has agreed on a plan for a UN mission to assess the situation in Gaza to enable the safe return of displaced Palestinians.
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World Health Organization officials voiced concern on Tuesday about the possible collapse of hospitals in southern Gaza as the conflict intensifies around the city of Khan Younis, with many medical staff and patients fleeing for their lives.
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Britain's foreign minister David Cameron has said he's worried that Israel has undertaken actions in Gaza that might be in breach of international law.
Gaza’s health ministry collects data from the enclave’s hospitals and the Palestinian Red Crescent.
The health ministry does not report how Palestinians were killed, whether from Israeli airstrikes and artillery barrages or errant Palestinian rocket fire. It describes all casualties as victims of “Israeli aggression”.
The ministry also does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
Throughout four wars and numerous skirmishes between Israel and Hamas, UN agencies have cited the Hamas-run health ministry’s death tolls in regular reports. The International Committee of the Red Cross and Palestinian Red Crescent also use the numbers.
In the aftermath of war, the UN humanitarian office has published final death tolls based on its own research into medical records. The UN's counts have largely been consistent with the Gaza health ministry’s, with small discrepancies.
For more on the Gaza health ministry’s tolls, click here.
(FRANCE 24 with AP)
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)
